Hey, Your Online Dating Profile Sucks!

It’s been reported that 20-30% of relationships today begin online. According to a 2013 study reported in USA Today in 2013, one third of all recent marriages in the United States started online. For every success story, there are those of us with many a story about our misadventures in the big, bad online dating world. With a plethora of online dating sites available to singles how do you make yourself stand out from the crowd? With your online dating profile! Now I know the thought of writing your online dating profile can be overwhelming. How much should you say? Are you saying too much? Too little? Are you coming off as funny, because you really are funny? Really. Will the reader understand your sense of humor? And what about pictures?! You want to appear to be social, but not a party animal. Fun and adventurous, but also a homebody. Sexy, but not slutty. Intelligent, but not pretentious.

None of us wants to risk sounding like a used car salesmen trying to sell ourselves in our online dating profile, but it doesn’t have to be that difficult or overwhelming.

Just don’t be this guy:

“About Me

Union carpenter, love to skate/ play hockey,country music, Live in a nice condo”

Or this guy:

“About Me

More on this later.”

Here’s a guy who’s on the right track:

“My self-summary

Well, little about myself. Former active duty Marine and college graduate working in downtown Boston in the Financial sector. Have traveled all over the world and have seen and experienced some amazing places and different cultures. Love the outdoors specially now it’s summer. Big into the hiking, and everything in nature. Love going out with friends and exploring the city. If that sounds like somebody you’d like to know. Let me know.”

DO use the old adage of “show, don’t tell”. What this means is that you shouldn’t just say you’re funny, interject some humor into your dating profile.

DON’T make your About Me section all about your perfect match. It’s called “about me” for a reason…tell people about you!

DO have a photo of yourself, several in fact!

DON’T post selfies or shirtless photos

DO showcase your personality, humor, hobbies and interests when writing about yourself.

DON’T take this opportunity to pour your heart about about your recent divorce or breakup or consider your profile the chance to finally write your personal memoir.

DO be original and make your profile stand out from the crowd; the best way to do this is to be yourself!

DON’T write the same boring cookie cutter profile as everyone else (“I like piña coladas and getting caught in the rain….”)

I’ve written my fair share of online dating profiles, for myself and for others, and I’ve also read my fair share while navigating the online dating waters. While we all have our individual lists of what irks the hell out of us and what makes us hit that wink button, it really is important to make a good first impression and that means having an online dating profile that truly represents who you are and what you want.

The most important thing to remember when you are writing your online dating profile is to be yourself! There are enough fake people in this world, both online and off, don’t be one of them. Yes, you are essentially being introduced to someone online, but the whole point of online dating is to take it offline and date, so why lie or misrepresent yourself?

What do you think makes an online dating profile good or bad? Do you have any tips to share? If you need help writing your profile, contact me.